


The Effect of a Name

by BlueBird_1323



Series: A Different Side to the Elemental Masters [1]
Category: Lego Ninjago
Genre: Angst, Bittersweet Ending, Character Study, Depersonalization, Gen, Headcanon Backstory, Identity Issues, References to Another LEGO Theme, Self-Doubt, Uncertain Ending, Whump, identity crisis
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-17
Updated: 2021-02-17
Packaged: 2021-03-12 06:20:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29505396
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueBird_1323/pseuds/BlueBird_1323
Summary: Paleman, Mr. Pale, Pale, whatever you call him, evidently has many names he goes by. But the question is... what exactly are those names doing to him?Briefly put, a character study on the identity crisis of an invisible man.
Series: A Different Side to the Elemental Masters [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2180121
Comments: 18
Kudos: 5





	The Effect of a Name

**Author's Note:**

> This technically is a part of the Elemental Master Escapades, my series, but I felt it was a bit too serious/angsty to put there. Plus, it’s focused solely on one character.
> 
> And for those who have read my other works: yes, I love Paleman’s character, and no, I can’t explain why. He’s very fun to explore and I have a lot of headcanons about him, specifically his history

Paleman was known by a lot of different names. He didn’t know why he had so many titles, but never brought it up with others. Why would he complain about names when there were so many other things wrong in the world? And even then, he didn’t mind most of the names given to him.

Firstly, and the one most used, was the name ‘Paleman’. His friends and teammates called him Paleman, as well as the fans he had gathered in Ninjago. After all, he was an elemental master and a former member of The Resistance. This was the name he was most used to, and was the name he used to introduce himself as well. It was an average, if not weird name, for an average, if not weird person.

The next name was ‘Mr. Pale’. Not a lot of people used this name for him, with the exception of his acquaintances, those who didn’t know him well, and in the occasion of formal events or formal people. Paleman wasn’t a fan of this name, but didn’t object when it was used. He felt it was too uppity for him, there was too much prestige with the title ‘mister’. Plus, he didn’t look much like a ‘mister’ anyway.

Then there was ‘Pale’. Like ‘Mr. Pale’, it wasn’t used too often, but for a different reason. He was only called Pale by his close friends, Tox being one of them. He preferred Pale over Mr. Pale in certain situations, as it felt more comfortable. It was more relaxed, intimate. But due to its intimacy, he didn’t like certain people calling him Pale. Tox could, he had known her for years. Shade could, he felt a special connection with him that he couldn’t understand. Maybe Neuro, Neuro and him were becoming close. But he didn’t want the Ninja to call him ‘Pale’, nor most of the people he knew. He was close with very few, and he liked it that way.

However there was a name he avoided. A name he tried to leave behind, a name of the past. In fact, that name didn’t even belong to him, yet still he couldn’t escape the association. ‘Invizable’ was not his name, and he cringed every time someone called him that.

The other name he had left behind him was one he didn’t mention to many. He didn’t even like saying it out loud. It was a bitter reminder of what was and what could have been, a title that was his claim to former fame. A title of the famous singer from Astor City who dropped off the grid years ago after the incident. The name existing long before Invizable, Pale, Mr. Pale, and Paleman. It was the name of who he once was.

But... there were names he didn’t like. Names he didn’t choose or use, but were given to him by others. They were never consistent, but all were on roughly the same path.

_Freak. Weirdo. Creep. Coward._

Some of his fellow elemental masters had even used these when he first had met them. Even now, when he knew that he was on good terms with most of them, he could still hear those names in their voices echoing in his memory. He didn’t forget. He never would.

There were no benefits from all these names. It caused confusion with those he knew, — as they never really knew which one to use — but it caused turmoil for him. With each name or title he had, there was a different personality associated with it. While it was natural for people to change depending on who they were with, Paleman took it to an entire new level.

He didn’t know who he was anymore. In all honesty, he never really knew in the first place, even before the incident. But now? It was much worse. Who _was_ he? Where could he even begin to start answering that question?

Was he Paleman, the slightly odd and quirky elemental master? Was he Mr. Pale, a mysterious and withdrawn figure? Was he Pale, an emotional wreck who tried to mask his feelings? Maybe he was even Invizable — or at least partly him — who still hadn’t recovered from the accident in Astor City? Was he the elemental master of light, someone who sounded like they could come out of some world-saving prophecy?

Or worse... was he the freak that everyone originally thought he was? The coward who never showed his face, or the creep who dressed like some sort of pimp and had the voice of a sleaze.

Paleman had too many names, all of which caused confusion and internal conflict in himself. He wondered constantly who he was and how others saw him based on the names they had given. Plus, he was a washed-up celebrity, someone who had their glory stolen from them by a nonsensical evil, so his identity was always a bit unstable. He would never complain, at least not to just anyone. After all, he may have been hitting his midlife crisis a bit early by twenty to thirty years. Nothing too odd, right? This was something everyone did and experienced, right?

He already knew the answer to that one.

Despite this, Pale was confident in one thing, and one thing alone: even with all these names, he knew that he was no longer the man he used to be, and there was no chance of going back.

No matter how hard he tried or cried, or grieved or lamented, he — whoever that was — could not go back. Forwards was the only way to go, and whoever he was would trek on, just like he always has. He called himself a shell of who he once was — another title — but that only left room for hope. After all, shells can be filled...

Right?


End file.
